Mott Haven, Bronx

Mott Haven, Bronx is a residential neighborhood in the southwestern section of The Bronx, New York City. Founded as "Emmanus" by the United Provinces in 1639, the piece of land was purchased by iron works owner Jordan L. Mott in 1849. From the late 1800s to the 1940s, the neighborhood had high upper-middle class Irish and German populations, and it was once home to the largest Irish musical diaspora community, as well as the location of IRA veteran parades during the 1940s and 1950s. During the 1940s, "blockbusting" (the spreading of racial fears by real estate owners to pressure wealthy people into selling their homes at low costs) led to white flight from the area, and African-Americans and Hispanics moved into the neighborhood. During the 1960s, a wave of arson destroyed or damaged several residential, commercial, and industrial buildings, and the area became a part of the impoverished South Bronx region. Gentrification would later take place, reducing the crime rates in Mott Haven. In 2011, Mott Haven had a population of 52,885 people, with 72.3% being Hispanics, 24.7% African-Americans, 1.7% whites, .4% Asians, and .1% others.